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As the world watches the Russian invasion of Ukraine unfold, UkraineAlert delivers the best Atlantic Council expert insight and analysis on Ukraine twice a week directly to your inbox.


editor’s picks

“Putin’s Not Finished,” Warns Former Defense Official Evelyn Farkas

UkraineAlert
Feb 28, 2025

Putin uses NATO as an excuse for his war against Ukrainian statehood

By
Peter Dickinson

Vladimir Putin claims his invasion of Ukraine was provoked by NATO expansion but his efforts to eradicate Ukrainian identity in areas under Russian occupation and his insistence regarding Ukraine’s complete disarmament reveal his ultimate goal of erasing Ukrainian statehood entirely, writes Peter Dickinson.

Civil Society
Conflict

“Putin’s Not Finished,” Warns Former Defense Official Evelyn Farkas

UkraineAlert
Mar 4, 2025

Europe has the resources to defend itself and back Ukraine against Russia

By
Agnia Grigas

By leveraging its economic strength, demographic advantage, and military potential, Europe can confidently counter Putin’s imperial ambitions and provide Ukraine with the support it needs to resist Russia’s invasion, writes Agnia Grigas.

Conflict
Defense Industry

“Putin’s Not Finished,” Warns Former Defense Official Evelyn Farkas

UkraineAlert
Feb 27, 2025

The Finlandization fallacy: Ukrainian neutrality will not stop Putin’s Russia

By
Brian Mefford

Donald Trump seeks to broker a peace deal with Vladimir Putin but any attempt to impose neutrality on Ukraine could set the stage for further Russian aggression, writes Brian Mefford.

Conflict
European Union

Latest analysis

UkraineAlert

Feb 20, 2025

Trump and Putin seek economic reset but businesses may not rush back to Russia

By
Edward Verona

As the Trump administration seeks to reset relations with Russia as part of a peace process to end the war in Ukraine, Moscow is pushing the idea of increased economic cooperation, writes Edward Verona.

Conflict
Corruption


UkraineAlert

Feb 18, 2025

Transatlantic alliance enters most challenging period since Suez crisis

By
Edward Verona

The conclusion that many observers are drawing from the 2025 Munich Security Conference is that the United States, at least during the Trump presidency, is no longer willing to guarantee European security, writes Edward Verona.

Conflict
European Union


UkraineAlert

Feb 18, 2025

Georgia’s pro-Kremlin authorities intensify crackdown on opposition

By
Mercedes Sapuppo

Georgia’s pro-Kremlin authorities presented new legislation in February that critics say will increase pressure on the country’s civil society and independent media while also placing additional restrictions on protests, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.

Civil Society
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Feb 13, 2025

Ukrainian drones reportedly knock out 10 percent of Russian refining capacity

By
Peter Dickinson

Ukraine’s 2025 campaign of drone strikes on Russian energy infrastructure has succeeded in knocking out around one-tenth of Russia’s refining capacity, according to analysis by Reuters, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Defense Technologies


UkraineAlert

Feb 13, 2025

A Putin-friendly peace deal would be disastrous for global security

By
Ihor Smeshko

As US President Donald Trump announces the start of negotiations with Russia to end the war in Ukraine, Ihor Smeshko warns that a Putin-friendly compromise peace would have catastrophic consequences for the future of international security.

Conflict
International Norms


UkraineAlert

Feb 12, 2025

Europe must prepare to defend itself in an increasingly multipolar world

By
Mykola Bielieskov

With the United States looking to pivot away from Europe to Asia and a revisionist Russia openly embracing an expansionist agenda, European leaders must prepare to defend themselves in an increasingly multipolar world, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

Conflict
Defense Industry


UkraineAlert

Feb 11, 2025

Can Russia be held accountable for the crime of aggression in Ukraine?

By
Kristina Hook

In early February, a coalition of 37 countries announced “significant progress” toward the establishment of a special tribunal for the international crime of aggression against Ukraine, writes Kristina Hook.

Conflict
Disinformation


UkraineAlert

Feb 11, 2025

How Ukraine’s shadow army fights back against the Russian occupation

By
Omar Ashour

Ukraine’s resistance movement has evolved significantly in the eleven years since the onset of Russian military aggression, with a dramatic escalation following the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, writes Omar Ashour.

Civil Society
Conflict


UkraineAlert

Feb 6, 2025

Ukraine can play a key role in Europe’s future energy architecture

By
Nataliya Katser-Buchkovska

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has highlighted the need for Europe to pursue greater energy flexibility and connectivity, writes Nataliya Katser-Buchkovska.

Conflict
Economic Sanctions


UkraineAlert

Feb 6, 2025

Russian foreign minister compares Trump’s ‘America First’ to Nazi propaganda

By
Peter Dickinson

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has compared US President Donald Trump’s “America First” concept to Nazi propaganda as the Kremlin continues its long tradition of exploiting the trauma of World War II to demonize opponents, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict
Disinformation

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spotlight

Resilience in the face of adversity

Ukraine’s transformation

Ukraine has moved tentatively toward an open society and market economy since independence. The country has held several democratic elections and made halting progress in addressing corruption and state control in its economy. Since the 2014 Maidan Revolution, Ukraine has undertaken significant governance and economic reform and moved decisively toward a Europe-Atlantic foreign policy. Since 2022, Ukraine has resiliently continued to advance some reforms despite fighting for its very existence against the full-scale Russian invasion.

Learn more about Ukraine

“Putin’s Not Finished,” Warns Former Defense Official Evelyn Farkas

UkraineAlert
Dec 5, 2024

Ukraine’s entrepreneurial class can drive the country’s economic recovery

The Ukrainian SME sector has demonstrated remarkable wartime resilience and is poised to be at the forefront of efforts to create a modern, innovative, postwar economy, writes Anton Waschuk.

Read More

“Putin’s Not Finished,” Warns Former Defense Official Evelyn Farkas

UkraineAlert
Oct 1, 2024

Ukraine needs international investors to maintain defense tech momentum

By
Mykhailo Fedorov

Ukraine’s rapidly expanding defense tech sector can play a game-changing role in the war against Russia but Ukrainian companies need international investment, writes Ukraine’s Minister for Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov.

Artificial Intelligence
Conflict

“Putin’s Not Finished,” Warns Former Defense Official Evelyn Farkas

UkraineAlert
Jun 13, 2024

Ukraine officially embraces English as historic westward pivot continues

By
Oleksiy Goncharenko

By officially embracing English, Ukrainians aim to support their country’s historic pivot away from Moscow and return to the European community of nations, writes Oleksiy Goncharenko.

Civil Society
Conflict

The views expressed in UkraineAlert are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its supporters.

The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting stability, democratic values and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe and Turkey in the West to the Caucasus, Russia and Central Asia in the East.

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Content

UkraineAlert

Apr 12, 2016

“Putin’s Not Finished,” Warns Former Defense Official Evelyn Farkas

By Diane Francis

On April 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin suddenly announced creation of a National Guard, of up to 400,000 personnel, to control drug trafficking and terrorism. But former Pentagon adviser Evelyn Farkas has a different take: “I see this as riot control.” Putin is distracting attention from bad economic news, due to sanctions, she said. “This […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 12, 2016

In Odesa, Protesters Demand that Poroshenko Restore Reformist Prosecutor

By Vladislav Davidzon

Several hundred protesters have camped out in front of the regional prosecutor’s office in Odesa for the past two weeks demanding that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko reinstate reformist Deputy Prosecutor General Davit Sakvarelidze, who also concurrently held the post of regional prosecutor of Odesa. Sakvarelidze’s replacement, Nikolai Stoyanov, has held the position twice before, including […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 11, 2016

Prime Minister Yatsenyuk Resigns. Why Now? What’s Next?

By Anders Åslund

On April 10, Ukraine’s Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk submitted his resignation, and on April 12 parliament is expected to approve Speaker of Parliament Volodymyr Groisman as prime minister. It is, of course, good that Ukraine’s two-month long government crisis is being resolved, but it is not evident that the new government will be able to […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 7, 2016

The Economics of Ukraine’s Political Crisis

By Anders Åslund

Ukraine’s current political crisis is easy to understand. It was unleashed by an offensive by the Poroshenko Bloc to get greater control over the government. It started on February 3, when Economy Minister Aivaras Abramovicius resigned in protest against Ihor Kononenko, the gray cardinal of the Poroshenko Bloc, and it was aggravated by the failed […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 7, 2016

You Wouldn’t Think It from the Headlines, but Ukraine Is Making Progress

By Michael Druckman and Katie LaRoque

It’s been a rough several weeks for Ukraine in the news. From the firing of prominent reformer Davit Sakvarelidze from the Prosecutor General’s Office to the recent release of the “Panama Papers,” which seemingly link President Petro Poroshenko to several offshore accounts and sparked accusations from members of the Verkhovna Rada of abuse of office […]

Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 7, 2016

How Ukraine Can Contribute to NATO’s Forward Defense

By Ian J. Brzezinski and Markian Bilynskyj

NATO has decided to bolster its military operations in Central Europe to better deter and, if necessary, defend against Russian aggression. Toward that end, Alliance military authorities have been tasked to develop plans for the deployment of multinational units, possibly battalions or brigades, that will be deployed on a persistent basis along NATO’s eastern frontier. […]

NATO Russia

UkraineAlert

Apr 6, 2016

Obama Silent on Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh, While Putin Plans Shuttle Diplomacy

By Matthew J. Bryza

Absence of US Leadership May Have Consequences in Syria, Ukraine, and Beyond The United States has been conspicuously absent during the latest crisis over Azerbaijan’s breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh (NK). The White House has not yet issued a statement on this unprecedented uptick in violence. US Secretary of State John Kerry’s statement released on April […]

Syria The Caucasus

UkraineAlert

Apr 6, 2016

New Schedule for Minsk Implementation Urgently Needed

By Maksym Khylko

For several months, the Minsk peace process has been in a stalemate. Meetings of the Trilateral Contact Group and the Normandy Four have failed to make progress on the issue of elections in the Russian-occupied areas of the Donbas. The fourth provision of the Minsk II agreement envisages that local elections should be discussed “in […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 5, 2016

Ukraine’s Got a Real Shot at NATO Membership

By Stephen Blank

A Reply to Andreas Umland Andreas Umland writes that it would be senseless for Ukraine to aspire to NATO membership though it is desirable. The main reasons he cites are the dawning realization of the danger and potent threat that Russia presents to both Eastern Europe and the West, coupled with a residual unwillingness to […]

Russia Ukraine

UkraineAlert

Apr 5, 2016

Ukraine’s Understandable But Senseless Hope for NATO Membership

By Andreas Umland

Moscow’s aggression against Kyiv has led to a marked growth in Ukrainians’ support for their country’s accession to NATO. During the last two years, Ukrainian public opinion has made a U-turn, from skepticism of the Atlantic alliance to an enthusiastic embrace. Until 2013, almost two-thirds of Ukrainians strongly opposed NATO membership. In a July 2015 […]

Russia Ukraine
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